Scottish Highlands to be transformed by major rewilding project
The Affric Highlands initiative will involve planting trees, restoring peat bogs, connecting wildlife habitats and restoring river corridors over 500,000 acres.
Civil society
Indigenous resistance has staved off 25% of U.S. and Canada’s annual emissions
A new report by Indigenous Environmental Network and Oil Change International found that Indigenous-led resistance over the past decade has stopped or delayed the equivalent of 25% of annual U.S. and Canadian emissions.
Australia’s northern hairy-nosed wombats are back from the brink of extinction
The population of Australia’s largest wombat species dipped to as low as 35 in the 1980s. Since then, with the help of predator fencing, habitat management, and more, the population has grown to more than 300.
Four tuna species recovering after decade of fishing quotas
In IUCN’s Red List update, the seven most commercially fished tuna species were reassessed. Four moved in a positive direction thanks to countries enforcing more sustainable fishing quotas and successfully combatting illegal fishing.
European bank Intesa commits to exclude Amazon oil from headwaters region of Ecuador and Peru
Intesa’s exclusion covers all financial products and services, as well as advisory services, and applies to projects and companies involved in exploration, production, and pipeline transport of Amazon oil.
35,000 Kenyan farmers unite to transform arid land into green farms
Farmers are learning how to make their degraded lands productive again after joining DryDev, a project led by World Agroforestry that has been working with farmers in Kenya, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Mali and Niger since 2013.
India has restored nearly 50,000 acres of mangroves since 2010
India is now replanting its mangroves in one of the largest restoration programs in the world. Since 2010, the World Bank has supported the community-managed plantation of 20,000 hectares of mangroves in India.
Stanford becomes first university in the U.S. to go 100% renewable energy
Stanford will become “first research university to use 100% renewable electricity” by summer 2022, even after a wildfire burned one of its solar farms.
CRISPR therapy for rare blood disease delivers “life-changing” results
Targeting a pair of rare genetic blood diseases, the experimental therapy has so far been 100 percent effective in all 22 patients treated.
Veteran homelessness in the U.S. decreased by nearly 50% between 2009 and 2018
Many veterans have connected with rapid re-housing through the Department of Veterans Affairs’ Supportive Services for Veteran Families program. In 2015 alone, the SSVF program helped nearly 100,000 veterans and about 35,000 children remain in their homes or quickly exit homelessness,